Rajasthani Teekhi Laal Murgh- Fiery Red Chicken Curry

Yay, it's officially Fall! Time for gorgeous orange pumpkins, warm hearty soups, stews, and spices, and heat- from hot chilies! Then again, there's never a dearth of spices, nor hot chilies in my kitchen. To complement these chilly evenings, a preparation of Rajasthani style Teekhi Laal Murgh is so very apt. Literal translation: Fiery Red Chicken (curry).

Note: There are no "exact quantities" to be used here. Eyeballing is the way to go.... and of course, taste as you go along.

Ingredients: 

Chicken- boneless, skinless thighs, cut into bite sized pieces

Yogurt- approx 1-2 tbs for a small tray of chicken

Red Chili powder- as much heat as you can handle! ;)

*If you have Kashmiri red chili powder or Karnataka byadegi red chili powder, even better. It imparts a wonderful deep attractive red color to the preparation, while not being overly hot

Ginger-garlic paste- 1 tbs

Lemon juice- 1 tbs

Onion- 1 medium sized, sliced

Fresh garlic- 2-3 smashed

Turmeric- 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Oil to cook- 7 tsp

Water- 1-2 cups (depending on how thin or thick you want the gravy to be)

Fragrant Spices: 

Cardamom- 3-4, smashed

Cloves- 4-5

Cinnamon powder- a pinch

Bay leaves- 4-5 (I like fresh bay leaves, dry is okay too)

Coriander seed powder- 2-3 tsp

Cumin seeds- 2 tsp

Method: 

1. Marinate chicken in yogurt, red chili powder, turmeric, ginger-garlic paste, and lemon juice for at least 30 minutes.

2. With some oil in a pot, get the heat going. Splutter cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves, add sliced onion, fresh bay leaves, cinnamon powder, and fry for about 5 minutes. Then throw in the marinated chicken pieces. Brown the chicken on both sides. Then add salt, water, and some extra red chili powder. If there's leftover marinade, add that in as well. Bring to boil, cover, simmer for 20 minutes.

3. The chicken will have cooked. Uncover pot. The oil will be floating on top, and yes, that's a good sign. ;) Add coriander seed powder, give it a stir and throw in some smashed fresh garlic. Cover again  for 5 minutes, to get coriander and garlic flavor infused in the curry. Serve with rotis or just plain white rice with a side salad. Slurp away and enjoy!

 

Teekhi Laal Murgh with Roti